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View Full Version : Mazda6 - first drive - It nearly got coty...


mugwump
28-11-2002, 08:38 AM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]Fellas...

Last week, I got to drive the 2. On Monday, I got to take the 6 on a very long drive, around the You Yangs national park in south west Melbourne. The model I drove was the Classic Hatch, which had most of the in-car luxuries and 16" alloys.

I'll be really interested in other people's opinions of this car if they have driven it as well or own one!

The look: Seriously slick, even without any body kit or the smaller alloys. You could park it outside a trendy cafe, and feel perfectly comfortable.

Interior: Upmarket interior with a fit and finish comparable to the Europeans. Red lighting and central console looked treat. Lots of luxuries, including a fuel consumption meter. We saw numbers between 6L/100km to 58L/100km!!! The standard stereo is a shocker though. buy the model with the bose system.

Engine: Sweeeeeeeeeeeet engine... loves to rev, yet has a really fat torque curve. so smooth, so tractable.. I dare say, there are only a handful of other engines of around the same displacement which are as good or better. Think BMW straight six.

Brakes: we gave it a hard time. Jumped on the brakes at 100km/h or more repeatly. very powerful. The ABS really works.

Drive: Firm but comfy ride, minimal body roll. again think BMW. Handling is superb... but the car is an understeerer, and we also detected some torque steer and slip on hard acceleration out of corners. Short throw gearshift feels so nice and is very fast. Its a 9-second car, easy.

Quite a coincidence that the COTY results got released only yesterday. At least I feel better about my opinions. It is indeed a special car to drive. Great for people who want a dynamic, good looking car, along with the practicality of 5 doors and the creature comforts that make the drive just that much more pleasurable. Kinda like the Astina, really, except a bit bigger!!

i want one!!![/color:post_uid0]

O-LYM-PIC
28-11-2002, 10:02 AM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]yeah i think the new 6 looks the goods. personally i think from the front it kind of looks like the new monaro, except with a sweeter touch.
just one question- are they front or rear wheel drive?? for a car that big i wouldnt think a FWD setup would do it justice.
other than that.... zoom zooom :cool:[/color:post_uid0]

Dogo
28-11-2002, 08:07 PM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]they're front wheel drive.

They have an optional TV too !! * lol * in the ceiling, only the back seats can see it :(

and the BOSE stereo the deluxe model has worth $6k ?? *i dont think so. 6 disc HU, 4 spkrs ( 6 including tweets ) and small sub in spare tyre. *Pity they've designed it so its hard to upgrade the stereo. *could do a stealth install tho ...

The dealer was boasting about how 'the whole car shakes with the sub right up'. LOL[/color:post_uid0]

mugwump
29-11-2002, 07:59 AM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]you are right - i wish it was a RWD.

pure speculation here... but i'm wondering if the stock stereo has a wiring harness that includes RCA preouts, which would then feed the bose EQ / amp. it seems to make economic anyway. all the cars i've seen so far with a bose system has an appearance that is exactly the same as the standard models.

if the preouts are there, then there's your system. its no alpine F1, but much better than the existing system, which is a shocker.[/color:post_uid0]

Sandyman
29-11-2002, 11:26 PM
[color=#FF0000:post_uid0]but still, it's better than commodore/falcon and hella better than camry! Looks-wise and performance wise. maybe it's just the fact that i'm sick of the holden and ford war, and that i'm not that keen on toyotas, but the 6 is damn good! I thought i heard something about mazda releasing a 6 cylinder engine for it later on? I might be mistaken, but i was pretty sure i read that before they released it at the mazda site.[/color:post_uid0]

Rupewrecht
29-11-2002, 11:56 PM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]yeah, only the USA get the 3.0L V6, but we also don't get the 2.0L diesel, or the 1.8 version here.

V6 specs:
60 deg six-cylinder DOHC 24-valve with inlet cam SV-T
Bore x Stroke (mm) 89.0 x 79.5
Displacement (cc) 2967
Max. power – hp/rpm 219/6250
Max. torque – ft-lb/rpm 202/4750
– Nm/rpm 274/4750
Compression ratio 10.0:1[/color:post_uid0]

Sandyman
30-11-2002, 02:16 AM
[color=#FF0000:post_uid13]The bastards! :angry:[/color:post_uid13]

Rupewrecht
06-12-2002, 11:16 PM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]some intersting news that i've come across...

[i:post_uid0]we here at Boettcher Racing are playing with a mazda 6 in conjuction with AVO......

pricing to be determined, but to be around $9000 fitted and complianced.

the guess is for around 180KW at the wheels....

honda can stick that in their pipe and smoke it!!!![/i:post_uid0]

so there you go, tony ;)[/color:post_uid0]

Sandyman
07-12-2002, 05:56 AM
[color=#FF0000:post_uid0]this the V6?!?!?[/color:post_uid0]

..::TalenT::..
07-12-2002, 10:14 PM
[color=#000000:post_uid2]how sweet is tha 6, i want one but i must admit i dont like the front much :( kinda looks like the corolla but its nuttin a massive front bar wont fix for me...

later ya'll Adam :cool:[/color:post_uid2]

Rupewrecht
09-12-2002, 08:09 PM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]sorry, i should have said - this is a NSW Mazda Dealership and it's based on the 4cyl Mazda6! :O :)[/color:post_uid0]

mrpayner
21-12-2002, 12:27 AM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]Well, the oldies were out looking at new cars this morning , so I suggested we pop over to the Mazda dealership and have a look at the 6. As it turns out we got to drive the 6 without the sales dude there.
I tell ya what, it's fantastic. I got to drive it as well, and although the oldies are after an auto I found that the slushbox was quite good compared to other cars [ie our Commodore!]. As the other guys have explained the ride is nice and firm, just the way i like it. The power is delivered smoothly and pretty well seemlessly from the auto box. The nifty little sequential box mode is a nice feature too! More gadgets and buttons to press than you can poke a stick at! And those twin exhaust pipes. Definately need the chromie tail pipes!!
I was greatly impressed with the whole package, confidently saying that we should have one by early Feb 2003. [The colour not in stock!]

:D
Adam[/color:post_uid0]

Batmobile
21-12-2002, 05:55 AM
[color=#000000:post_uid0]Read somewhere in Wheels magazine of a factory Mazda6 MPS... all wheel drive, turbocharged 2.3L engine, something within the range of 206kw that should frighten the daylights out of Subie STi's everywhere...

drool.....

And it might be coming to Oz!!!

will see if I can find the article.[/color:post_uid0]